Experts Outline Pathway for Generating Up to Ten Terawatts of Power from Sunlight by 2030

The annual potential of solar energy far exceeds the world's energy consumption, but the goal of using the sun to provide a significant fraction of global electricity demand is far from being realized.

Scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), their counterparts from similar institutes in Japan and Germany, along with researchers at universities and industry, assessed the recent trajectory of photovoltaics and outlined a potential worldwide pathway to produce a significant portion of the world's electricity from solar power.

Experts predict 5-10 terawatts of PV capacity could be in place by 2030 if these challenges can be overcome:

• A continued reduction in the cost of PV while also improving the performance of solar modules
• A drop in the cost of and time required to expand manufacturing and installation capacity
• A move to more flexible grids that can handle high levels of PV through increased load shifting, energy storage, or transmission
• An increase in demand for electricity by using more for transportation and heating or cooling
• Continued progress in storage for energy generated by solar power.

Read more at National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Image Credit: National Renewable Energy Laboratory

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